Saturday, August 30, 2008

10 Things You Should Be Doing Now

1) Writing Letters. Buy stationary and get in the habit of writing letters to colleagues and folks you meet at networking events. Handwritten notes are a great way to develop professional relationships.

2) Make the most of your drive to work. Learn a foreign language on CD or listen to motivational or business books on CD.

3) Exercise. What we do is very stressful. Take the time to spend 30 minutes a day to exercise.

4) Watch what you eat. You are constantly traveling for depositions and hearings. Prepack healthy snacks like nuts or protein bars to avoid the candy bars at the airport.

5) Get to know everyone at your firm. Make the effort to develop relationships with as many co-workers as you can, from the top partner to the mail room guy. These personal relationships make work more enjoyable.

6) Get a mentor. Find someone who can help you navigate the practice of law.

7) Be a mentor. Help someone else navigate the practice of law.

8) Read the legal news. Keep up with what’s going in your legal community. You learn a lot about the lawyers you go up against and the judges you appear before.

9) Borrow CLE materials. Ask to borrow CLE materials other attorneys bring back from their seminars. They generally contain a lot of "how-to" practical advice.

10) Read others’ transcripts. Read the deposition and hearing transcripts of other attorneys at the office to gain a different perspective on how to do things.